Every week, I try to find players who could be sitting on the waiver wire and are worth picking up for this week based on their matchups. With bye weeks here, finding streaming options has become even more important! Here’s what I have for week eight:
Teams on a bye: None
He wasn’t asked to do much last week in the passing, with his defense shutting down the Saints offense and his running backs controlling things on offense. Still, he showed for the 2nd straight week that he can do damage with his legs, rushing for 75 yards in week 7 after rushing for 61 in week 6. He has only one turnover in the past five games after having 4 turnovers through the first 2 games. The matchup for him and the Broncos this week is about as good as it gets. They face the Panthers who rank 26th against the QB position in fantasy football this season and dead last in points allowed per game (33.9).
He was a popular waiver wire add this week in deep leagues and super flex formats, but in those shallower leagues, people don’t necessarily feel the need to roster 2 QB, especially on a week like this where there are no byes. I have no issue with that, but not every QB being rostered has a good matchup this week, and Winston does. Not only do the Ravens rank last in the league in passing yards allowed and 26th in points allowed, but they rank number one against the run, so teams have no choice but to throw the football. The Ravens should also score plenty of points in this matchup, which will present Winston and company with plenty of garbage time opportunities.
He is stuck behind Kenneth Walker, which does limit his upside, but the Bills have been horrible against RB this season in fantasy, ranking 31st. Walker gets most of the work, but he is also injury-prone, and at any moment, Charbonnet can become the RB1 in the offense. There isn’t much upside in this play, but in those deeper leagues where you have RB issues, this is an option to look into. Charbonnet can be especially valuable in PPR formats, and with DK Metcalf dealing with an injury, the Seahawks RB could become more involved in the passing game this weekend.
The Jets are a big mess right now, sitting at 2-5 and in need of a big win streak to have any chance at a playoff spot in the AFC. Still, in a matchup against the Patriots this week, you have to be interested in using their skill players. Breece Hall has looked great since the head coaching change, so it’s not like Allen is going to take his job, but the Patriots rank 30th in fantasy football against the RB position, and there is a pathway to both Allen and Hall finding the endzone in this game.
I wrote about him this week in my waiver wire article because I just have a gut feeling about him in his matchup this week. Everyone was writing off Javonte Williams in the Broncos offense, and because he had a monster week against the Saints, he is suddenly back in everyone’s good book. Don’t get me wrong, Williams is a great start this week if you have him. The Panthers rank last in fantasy football against the RBs, and they allow the most points per game in the NFL. The Panthers have given up a lot of points to back up RBs this season, too, so McLaughlin is someone worth looking at in your deeper leagues.
This could be a huge week for the rookie. With Chris Godwin out for the year and Mike Evans dealing with a bad hamstring, he could find himself as the WR1 in this weeks matchup against the Falcons. The Falcons are going to put up points in this game, just like they did the first time these two teams met this season. Whether that means the Bucs are airing it out to keep pace or putting up passing numbers in garbage time is yet to be decided, but there should be anywhere from 7-10 targets for McMillan this week, especially when you consider that he saw 8 last week while Godwin was still healthy.
He was pretty much non-existent in fantasy through the first 4 weeks of the season; however, in weeks 5, 6, and 7, Bateman has been very solid and has moved into the flex conversation in 12, 14, and definitely 16-team leagues. He has at least 4 catches in each of the past 3 weeks, but what stands out to me is that his yardage total has gone up each week, and he has scored 2 TD during that time as well. The Ravens look to be unstoppable, and Lamar Jackson looks like he is on his way to another MVP season, so having pieces of the offense is ideal. This week, the Ravens face the Browns, who rank 27th in fantasy against WRs.
Tillman hadn’t seen more than 2 targets in any game this season before week 7. Following the Amari Cooper trade, though, his target share was expected to be on the rise. I don’t think many people realized just how much, though. He saw 12 targets last week, three different QBs, and this week, he will be catching passes from the best of that bunch. With Winston under center, you can expect all the Browns pass catchers to improve, but Tillman is the guy with the most upside who is not on many rosters yet. The Ravens rank 30th in fantasy football against the WR position.
I think many fantasy managers want to see a repeat performance from Dissly before buying into his monster week 7 performance, and I can understand why. He hadn’t topped 4 catches or 29 yards in any game through the first five games of the season, and suddenly, he comes away with an 8 catch, 81-yard performance. Also, keep in mind that the Chargers threw the ball a season-high 39 times in week 7, possibly trying to get away from being so run-heavy. If that trend continues at all, Dissly could remain one of the top targeted players in the offense, and the Saints, who he faces this week, rank 28th in the NFL against the pass.
At least until Mike Evans is back, Otton could very well be the number one or number two target in the Bucs passing game. He saw a season-high 10 targets last week following the injury to Evans and made a season-high 8 catches for a season-high 100 yards. The Bucs play a huge game this week against the Falcons, who are their top competition in the NFC South, so Otton is going to be relied upon heavily.
People aren’t big on the Lions defense since the Aiden Hutchinson injury and because they give up a lot of points. Still, this week, it’s hard not to like them because they face one of the worst offenses in the NFL. They will host the Titans, who have the worst passing offense in the league, ranking 2nd worst in yards per game, and 26th in points per game.
